I worked for a gentleman with a great since of humor for 30 years at a store in Riverside, Mo. (suburb). It was a mom & pop type store and he was such a unique individual…It was called, RED X…….& I managed the fabric dept…
I learned from him to be Patient with people, no matter how mad they made you….His patience and humor ALWAYS overcame any situation, even impossible people. I wondered why he would take so much mental abuse from some people, but they invariably became the best supporters and customers. So, I have tried to follow this method of life…..It works so well with most people…They appreciate someone who will ‘give’ a little. So, Patience with Humor works with just about everyone and makes the person dishing it out, feel very humble.
Female age 64 Kansas City, Missouri, USA

Too far east is west… (I suppose its the same as saying extremes meet. e.g. a person may verge on extreme arrogance by being excessively humble. It intrigues me this – people strive for humility and get ‘humble’, then they get proud of being humble!)
Pursuits become habits…
A closed mouth captures no flies… (i.e. shut up) or Save your breath to cool your porridge…
Half of spiritual life consists in remembering what we are up against and where we are going. – Ayya Khema, “When the Iron Eagle flies”
Female 47 Victoria, Australia

“Balance. There needs to be a balance to everything including how we interact with others — there should never be all give and no take; all thinking of yourself and never others; all thinking of others and never yourself. Any extremes or extreme viewpoints should be held questionable particularly if they ask that you disconnect yourself from others or subjugate yourself.

Accomplishment. Everyone should have a sense of accomplishment in their current or past life. Especially children; allowing them to give up, cheat or just remember something long enough for a test steals their sense of accomplishment. Everyone needs to know what personal achievement feels like and know that some things you do have to work for yourself.

And, some workable marital spat fixers:

Budget. Don’t have “a budget” — have several. Have the “this is what we need to survive” to “when we no longer have to rob Peter to pay Paul” and several other levels to the “ideal dream” financial plans. If both partners work, the percentage of income is the percentage of bills their paycheck covers, the percentage of savings they contribute to (determined by which “plan” the couple is currently budgeting for), and the percentage of disposable/fun income they are in control of. No way does one spouse doling out or controlling the funds work peaceably. No fighting over the ups and downs of different jobs and changing salaries as spouses move ahead or behind each other in salary.

My sociologist neighbor in her current (the second marriage for both of them) marriage has a rule I now use: if it bothers you enough to yell, fight or sulk about it — guess whose chore it now is?
Female age and country of origin not supplied

When I was a young girl and young woman, I thought that there was no question but that my life would be perfect and I was probably 21 before I knew for sure otherwise. I married young, 19, to a man who shortly thereafter became physically abusive. I became pregnant early on and had two other pregnancies. The physical abuse continued and during the time of my third pregnancy alcoholism became a problem in our home. I did not leave nor cause my husband to leave because there had never been a divorce in my family and I thought that if I would just learn what I was doing wrong, our life would become OK. I truly believed that these problems were due to some failing on my part. I never left but needed to find some job to keep us afloat financially as our money was being spent in gambling and drinking. I was so blessed to find a job which supported us all and was even able to educate my family. This horrendous personal life caused me to become extremely resourceful and I remain a problem solver to this day. If someone presents a problem to me, it seems that several solutions come to me in the blink of an eye. My first marriage lasted 32 years before I sought a divorce. Two years later, I married again, happily, but my husband had a heart attack after six years and I found myself alone. I lost one of my sons tragically and I must say that this is the worst thing a parent will have to bear. I have collected myself however and do not fight life but embrace it and am thankful that I have come through what I have with my sanity intact and must have a good attitude because many people seek my counsel and I do what I can to help others.
Female age 68, USA